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SINGAPORE – Nee Soon GRC MP Louis Ng is currently under investigation by police for failing to apply for a permit before visiting street vendors with a sign in June last year.
Ng had posted about his trip to the Yishun Park Hawker Center on Facebook on June 20, encouraging residents to visit the street vendors.
In the four images accompanying the post, Mr. Ng is seen holding a piece of paper that says “Support them” followed by a smiley face.
In a statement on Wednesday (March 3), the police said they have been investigating a possible crime of public gathering without permission from Mr. Ng.
“We have already interviewed Mr. Ng. The police investigations are ongoing,” they added.
In Mr. Ng’s Facebook post in June, he wrote that street vendors “worked hard over the past few months to try to make ends meet and provide us with delicious food.”
“More than ever, our street vendor heroes need our support,” he added.
On Wednesday, Ng wrote on her Facebook page that she was at the Yishun Park Hawker Center in June of last year doing her regular walk.
“This was an especially important ride as we had just exited the circuit breaker. I was there to make sure our street vendors were okay. As we all know, they suffered a lot during the circuit breaker,” he wrote.
“I also wanted to urge our residents to support our street vendors and I held up a sign indicating this and took photos together with the street vendors.”
He added that the police had also asked him to provide a statement on the matter, and he did so.
Ng also said that in a separate incident in January this year, he showed a poster for the climate change video featuring the first parliamentary motion on climate change.
“To clarify, that sign was an empty piece of cardboard. The words were superimposed on the video I posted,” he wrote.
Participating in a public gathering without a police permit is illegal and constitutes a crime under the Public Order Act.
According to the Act, an “assembly” means a meeting or gathering for the purpose of demonstrating support or opposing the views or actions of any person, group or government. It also applies to publicizing a cause or campaign, marking or commemorating any event, and includes a one-person demonstration.
A public assembly refers to an assembly in a public place or to which members of the public are invited, induced, or permitted to attend. A person convicted of organizing a public assembly without a permit can be fined up to $ 5,000.
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